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As a beginner, school textbooks are the best place to start.I am writing this answer with as much honesty as I can muster.Many people are going to get disappointed because they were not expecting this answer. But since so many people have asked me this question, I am not joking about this, and am writing this after having given it ample of thought.You will see a lot of books on economics in the market. But none of those books are for beginners. Many of these books will have catchy headlines (I am looking at you, freakonomics), but will not help you to properly understand the subject. True understanding comes by devoting ample of time to absorb the concepts.There are two things I am going to talk about here -If the school textbooks are so good, why do most people forget the stuff written therein? Are they really helpful?How does learning work, anyway? How should we study economics to properly understand it, and be able to talk about it in real life?#1] Why we are not able to use the school textbooks fullyThere are myriad problems with the way education is imparted in schools. In addition to time constraints and lack of student’s interest, schools also struggle with quality of teachers and lack of in-depth discussion around the subject.But now, that you are an adult, you are going to approach the subject in an entirely different light. Let’s look at what is different now -Today, you are asking this question because you want to study economics out of interest, not out of some compulsion. You will notice that this makes a lot of difference, and you will enjoy the experience.Studying economics like this will help you to ask questions (on Google, on Quora or asking your friends directly). And since you now have better perspectives than a school kid, you will ask more intelligent questions.We are not able to use the school books precisely because these two advantages were not present when we were reading the subject for the first time. And let’s not forget that many science students have never formally studied economics as a subject.The best place to start is always the basics. Fall down to the ground. Or better still, go underground, and build your foundations from there. It will take time, obviously, but your understanding will be firm and complete. You will then start enjoying the subject and even relishing it.Understanding something so deeply and completely gives us immense satisfaction. Do you have any subject where you can boast of this? If not, then develop one! Mark my words: there is no happiness more complete than the happiness of having understood a subject such that you can teach others about it.For that, start with the school textbooks.#2] How do I use the textbooks in the best manner now?You will notice that most NCERT books for class 9–10–11 are simple and not very huge in size as well. Many novels or other non-fiction books are bigger than a simple economics book. Hence, it does not take time to read the book (if words is all we compare, these might be one the smallest books out there).But true understanding does not come simply from reading.It comes from questioning.When you read anything from the textbook, spend some time thinking about it. Ask yourself: does the book make sense to you? Is it intuitive, logical? Never stop thinking about any concept until it looks obvious to you.Don’t just memorise the concepts, instead put yourself in that situation and see what you would do. Simply reading that “demand is inversely proportional to price” will not do you much help. But imagining yourself in a market and trying to decide on how much you could afford for a product will help you better absorb the concepts.Remember the golden rule about economics: it is intuitive. If something is not logical, it does not fit here. Economic concepts have to be logical. If you cannot see the logic, and if you cannot reproduce the logic whenever asked, you have not understood the concept.Don’t be fascinated with jargons. Many people can intimidate you when they mention heavy economic concepts. You shouldn’t worry about them, instead - stick to your concepts. Don’t get swayed away by what people say - accept something only if it makes sense to you.Relate your real life experience to the concepts you study. From surge pricing in Ola, to discounts for non-cash transactions, to interest rate drops after demonetisation - everything is an economic concept. Make sure you see the underlying logics behind each of this - as you go along.Here is a proper way to address a doubt: if you don’t understand something, think again. Think harder. Think again, and again. What is not logical? Why does this concept not make sense to you? If you still don’t get it, then ask others. This way, you will have a richer discussion with others.The world of economics is beautiful. But like I said, you can cherish the true beauty only if you have completely understood the concepts. Anything that confuses you, or sounds “not proper” or “not obvious” should be questioned, repeated and pondered over until it becomes obvious.You can buy the hard copy of NCERT books here - Class 12th economics bookSome sample PDF chapters can be found online here -Chapter 1 - Introduction to economicsChapter 2 - How consumers behaveChapter 3 - The economics of productionList of all chapters (contents)The other chapters can be found here, for free PDF download - Class 12: Economics: Introductory MicroeconomicsRead all the chapters, and you will get to know the economic concepts in the greatest of the details. All charts, terms, graphs, concepts - everything is here for free.What else are you waiting for?As you read these books, you will learn new economic concepts. In order to discuss them, evaluate them, or put them to real life test, come back on Quora and together we will discuss the best of economic concepts. Deal?I have already started The Economics Blog on Quora. Waiting for you to contribute to this blog, as a writer, after you have finished the basics, of course.Wish you the best!On a related note, you might want to read this - How should we explain complex concepts in a simplified manner? This answer will tell you the basics of how learning takes shape in the human mind and how we can improve it.

Civil Service Prelims - How can you clear UPSC Prelims in 9 months?Do you have only 6 months or less before the next UPSC Civil Service Prelims? Don’t worry. You can clear the Preliminary Exam within this short time-frame – provided you follow the right strategy.Remember, there is no UPSC Mains unless you clear UPSC Prelims!Unless you clear the cut-off score of the UPSC Civil Services Preliminary Exam, you will not be allowed to sit for the Main Exam.Never underestimate the importance of UPSC Prelims. Only 3 out of 100 candidates who sit for Prelims, clear the cut-off score. Yes, the ‘Prelims Hurdle’ is more difficult to cross than Mains.We have seen many bright candidates lose out in UPSC Prelims due to their over-focus on the UPSC Mains stage.Concentrate more on Prelims Questions now!If you haven’t cleared prelims before, I strongly recommend you to devote at least 75% of your preparation time in the last 6 months before Prelims (December – May) entirely on Prelims topics.We have clearly mentioned what you should study in the respective months to ensure that your preparation most suits the requirements of the UPSC Civil Services Exam cycle.The Importance of the Right Strategy!To crack IAS in the first shot, you need the right strategy. Candidates often find Civil Services Exam a hard nut to crack not due to lack of hard-work or potential, but due to lack of right strategy.In this post, I am going to explain some winning strategies for you to to be adopted in the last 9 months.Winning Strategy 1 – The Reverse ApproachStart from the EndImagine that today is the D-Day! If you are going to appear for the UPSC Preliminary Exam today, what’s your idea about the exam?By following the reverse approach, we recommend you start by analysing previous year UPSC prelims question papers. Though the UPSC syllabus has mentioned many areas, you can see that more questions come from certain areas.Let us look at a sample UPSC CSE Prelims Question Paper of General Studies Paper 1. See the weightage of questions asked from each section.General Studies Paper I (Sample Question Paper) – Syllabus Area vs Number of QuestionsSubject Area Number of QuestionsIndian History and Culture – History of India and Indian National Movement.16Geography – Physical, Social, Economic Geography of India and the World.14Indian Polity – Constitution, Political System, Panchayati Raj, Public Policy, Rights Issues, etc.12Economics – Sustainable Development, Poverty, Inclusion, Demographics, Social Sector initiatives, etc.15Environment – General issues on Environmental Ecology, Bio-diversity and Climate Change18General Science10Current Affairs15Total100 Qns (Marks 2*100= 200)* The above-mentioned weightage of subjects/marks may not remain the same in the coming years. It’s just for basic understanding.Winning Strategy 2 – Follow a Test-Based ApproachBy a test-based approach, we don’t mean taking periodic exams to evaluate your preparation. It’s the reverse. The exams will be the basis of your preparation.This approach has the following advantages:It will help you cover all the recommended textbooks and online study materials within a timeframe.You will get proper exam practice. You can analyse your performance, find your strong and weak areas, compare your marks with peer across India, and avoid mistakes in the actual exam hall.You can learn a lot from the mock exam questions as well. This method is much faster than learning from textbooks.And if you are lucky, many questions in actual UPSC prelims may be directly or indirectly answered from the mock questions.Winning Strategy 3 – Learn how to cover NCERT Texts FasterFirst of all you should have NCERT Books as they help you a lot in understanding topics and scoring high in UPSC.If you don't have NCERT Books then you are lazy and unprepared. So, I am giving you a link from where you can download them for free in PDF format.https://letslearncbse.com/ncert-books/Go and download it.After that make Short noted of it and try to study from notes afterwards as it will speed up your preparation.Winning Strategy 4 – Don’t neglect CSAT Paper!CSAT Paper StrategyTo clear IAS prelims, you need at least 66 marks out of 200 for CSAT (GS Paper 2), however high are your marks in GS Paper 1.Don’t be over-confident about General Studies Paper 2 (CSAT) paper unless you are consistently scoring above 100 marks in mock test.Analyse previous year CSAT Papers. See if there is any pattern. Find the priority areas. See a sample below.General Studies Paper II (Sample Question Paper) – Syllabus Area vs Number of QuestionsSubject AreaNumber of Questions*Comprehension28General Mental Ability6Logical Reasoning18Analytical Reasoning8Data Interpretation4Basic Numeracy and Quantitative Ability10Decision Making and Interpersonal Skills6Total80 Qns (Marks 2.5*80 = 200)*The above-mentioned weightage of subjects/marks may not remain the same in the coming years. It’s just for basic understanding.If you think that scoring 66 marks out of 200 for CSAT is not a big deal, you may be mistaken. We have seen many candidates who end up worrying after the exam.The difficulty level of this paper is steadily increasing. You need to take this paper seriously.Winning Strategy 5 – Follow the 80-20 Principle80 percent result with 20 percent effortThe Pareto principle, also known as the 80/20 rule, is a management theory which states that 80 percent of the output from a given situation is determined by 20 percent of the input.So prioritise your time, effort, and study materials.Put effort on the 20% area which can bring 80% results.Even if you start preparing now – if you adopt the right strategies, do the smart-work, learn what is needed, and don’t go behind everything under the Sun – yes, you can clear UPSC CSE Prelims with just 9 months of preparation.The best way to clear civil service prelims in the first attempt is to have a positive mindset and a practical strategy.

Hi.Ideally anywhere between 3- 5 months with full devoted preparation should be enough for you to get a decent score. Rest it solely depends on your level of prep. The best time to start preparing for an exam depends solely on your level of knowledge, method of study and time you can devote per day. There are many who prepare for a week and excel and many who study for months and still don't achieve the target score. So I would recommend measure your level and then plan out your prep.As far as preparation is concerned, I prepared on my own. What I did was I used YouTube and Manhattan, ETS and Barrons. For the Quant section I used to watch video lessons of the specific topic and then solve the questions in Manhattan. This way my quant was sorted. And for verbal I practiced from Barrons(can be downloaded from the internet for free ) and Manhattan. And not to forget the Magoosh free app and Barrons app for words. Then I read the sample AWA answers in Manhattan and ETS official guide.That's all.I believe this answers your question.Having said that I have some material and pdf files of books for GRE. Let me know if you need them.Hope this helps :)